Vincent Hopes to Reveal Identities of Lebanese Judges Soon
The international tribunal”s registrar, Robin Vincent, said he hopes to uncover the Lebanese judges” identities soon, adding that the Lebanese vice president of the court would take office in The Hague "sooner rather than later."
"I need confirmation from the judges themselves that the security precautions are in place and working," the registrar said. "I need to be satisfied that … [the Lebanese judges] are happy with the arrangements," Vincent told The Daily Star in an interview published Saturday.
The Special Tribunal for Lebanon announced on March 24 that Antonio Cassese, an Italian, had taken his oath as president of the tribunal”s judges, while Belgium”s Daniel Fransen had been sworn in as the court”s pre-trial judge.
The Lebanese judges – among them the tribunal”s vice president as required by the court”s statutes – were sworn in with the seven international jurists, but their identities remain a secret.
The court released Cassese”s and Fransen”s names because security measures had been taken in their home countries, but the names of the Lebanese judges will come out only when the judges say the security precautions in Beirut are sufficient, Vincent said.
Cassese will arrive full-time in The Hague on April 14, earlier than previous proposals for him to move to the Netherlands at the beginning of May, Vincent told the English-language newspaper.
Lebanon”s justice ministry, meanwhile, will meet the deadline to transfer to the tribunal all Lebanese material on the Feb. 2005 assassination of ex-Premier Rafik Hariri, as well as the names of those detained in connection with the killing, said a ministry official on condition of anonymity.
Lebanese authorities have to submit the necessary information within 14 days after the March 31 receipt of the tribunal”s order, as written in the tribunal”s rules of evidence and procedure.
Tribunal prosecutor Daniel Bellemare, for his part, intends to provide his recommendations on the four detained generals as soon as possible, said Radhia Achouri, spokeswoman for the prosecutor”s office.
"My boss is going to be doing things as expeditiously as possible," Achouri said. "The intention is not to delay." As an example of Bellemare”s desire to move the tribunal proceedings along as fast as possible, Achouri said the prosecutor had sent Fransen the request for Lebanese authorities to transfer evidence on the morning after the regulations that made the request possible went into effect.